What is Cardinal Dolan up to? According to reports, Dolan has extended an invitation to President Obama to the annual Al Smith dinner in New York City. The president, reportedly, has accepted.

Historically, the dinner is one of the most prestigious political events in New York City particularly during a presidential election year and candidates from both parties usually attend.

Known for its lighthearted political speeches, the major speakers deliver a series of self-deprecating jokes while ribbing their opponent at the same time. In October 2008, Senator John McCain and Senator Barack Obama both attended the dinner, accepting an invitation by Cardinal Egan of New York. During the dinner, Cardinal Eagan expressed his “delight” that Obama and McCain had attended, called them “outstanding exemplary Americans.”

But this year, some Catholics are surprised to hear that Archbishop Dolan had invited Obama, now that he is president. Should the Archbishop associate a fundraiser for Catholic Charities with a leader whose administration remains defiantly opposed to Church moral teachings?

It’s not unprecedented in a presidential election year for a candidate not to be invited. In 1996, Cardinal O’Connor did not invite President Clinton or Senator Dole to the dinner and, in 2004, neither Sen. John Kerry nor President Bush were invited.

Obama’s attendance at the dinner this year could be awkward, particularly since the Catholic Church’s relationship with Obama has been severely tested in the battle over his administration’s contraception coverage mandate issued by the Department of Health and Human Services.

According to Dolan, Obama assured that his administration would not “impede” the work of the Catholic Church. But once the mandate was issued, Catholic bishops publicly denounced the move, calling it a threat to religious freedom. What’s worse, administration officials who met with the bishops about the mandate refused to compromise in any meaningful way.

Dolan spoke out against the mandate, but was charitable when publicly speaking about Obama’s motives.

“I think I believe him when he says that he highly regards the work of the Church and does not want his administration to impede any of that,” Dolan said about the President on CBS during the controversy.

But Dolan insisted that the mandate is “straightjacketing,” “handcuffing” and “strangling” the Church and suggested that the members of Obama’s administration were either insensitive or ignorant of their concerns.

The Archdiocese of New York joined the University of Notre Dame and over 40 other religious organizations filing suit against the Obama administration to block the mandate. After announcing the lawsuit, Dolan issued a statement declaring that the issue was now up to the courts.

“We have tried negotiation with the administration and legislation with the Congressand will keep at itand theres still no fix,” he stated. “Time is running out, and our precious ministries and fundamental rights hang in the balance, so we have to resort to the courts now.

Additionally, Obama has further dismayed faithful Catholics after he expressed his support of same-sex marriage. Obama has also refused to defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court.

In spite of their differences, Dolan appears willing to extend an olive branch to the president. Perhaps in this case, Dolan is conceding the political battle to be charitable and out of respect of the tradition of the dinner. The dinner raises millions for Catholic Charities each year and often serves as a symbol of bi-partisanship right before the presidential election.

Already, some Catholics are grumbling that the Archbishop’s public association with Obama may suggest a reluctance to oppose the president’s policies on abortion or religious freedom.

It has not been confirmed whether or not Republican candidate Mitt Romney has been invited, but presumably he will don a white tie and exchange jokes with the president and some of the wealthiest American citizens in New York City.

Dolan will also be given the opportunity to address both candidates in the national spotlight. While it is unlikely he will be able to change the president’s mind on these issues, he might see the dinner as an opportunity to defend religious liberty before the American public.

Hopefully the irony of Obama’s relationship with the Catholic Church will not be lost in the humorous tone of the event. It certainly won’t be lost on the media, who will frame it in the most dramatic terms.

Dolan is known for his sense of humor, which often characterizes his public remarks.

What weighs on me the most, Dolan explained in an interview in 2011, is the caricature of the Catholic Church as crabby, nay-saying, down in the dumps, discouraging, on the run. And Im thinking if there is anything that should be upbeat, affirming, positive, joyful, it should be people of faith.

Perhaps Dolan can be both gracious and critical while speaking about the president. The end result may teach Americans a significant lesson just before the presidential election.

Jesus dined with sinners and ate at the house of Zacchaeus the Tax Collector. What was the reaction of his disciples? They were scandalized. But Jesus had a purpose in this. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost. Luke 19:10 Like the disciples, we tend to rush to judgement far too readily. Let's give Dolan the benefit of the doubt.

this is willful folly.

cardinal dolan is a socialist.

5
posted on 08/06/2012 1:53:53 PM PDT
by the invisib1e hand
(At what point does an escalated effort to remove this traitor commence, and what form does it take?)

“In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Let us pray. Bless us, O Lord, and these, Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty. Through Christ, our Lord. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

Like the disciples, we tend to rush to judgement far too readily. Let’s give Dolan the benefit of the doubt.

_____________________________________

Thank you SOOOOOOOOOOOOO much for posting this. It is so true. LOTS of people are praying for Cardinal Dolan....for his protection, for wisdom, faithfulness, holiness, etc. This is according to the will of God. I believe God is answering those prayers. I will gladly give him the benefit of the doubt on this.

Why do I get the nagging feeling Dolan has been tamed somehow, either by a promise of a half-measure or worse.. blackmail? Will they soon appear together at a press conference announcing the finding of “common ground?”

Im afraid after four years of making some inroads on my (democratic) fellow Catholics, stuff like this just encourages them to stay in the democrat fold. Ive been hammering away on abortion, gay marriage and now these health care mandates, and all of a sudden we have the cardinal, one who led the charge, making nicey-nice. At best its confusing.

At best. What is the good bishop up to? The Democratic machine in Washington plays for keeps. Has he taken on too much here? Does he think that he can run with the Democratic dogs?

22
posted on 08/06/2012 6:02:27 PM PDT
by MarkBsnr
(I would not believe in the Gospel, if the authority of the Catholic Church did not move me to do so.)

Perhaps it's someone like you that gives the socialist a pass and empowers them by weakness of argument of hiding behind a screename on free Republic ? Yet, you CRITICIZE someone like Cardinal Dolan who would deal with an enemy face to face like Our Blessed Lord did with the devil and with Pontius Pilate

It's obvious who is the weak in faith ,dear friend,...and it's not Cardinal Dolan, which leaves you know who

The Church can’t be engaged in the life of the country as she opposed the mandate but not engaged when an opportunity to maintain a civil tone comes up. It will show that our position is rooted in reason rather than instinct.

The very topic of this thread is evidence, for starters. Then too are the cardinals own words: "The catholic church has been advocating for universal healthcare for nearly a hundred years!" "I'm a staunch union man!"

As I said, if there were a sworn statement, you'd deny it. And furthermore, an opinion is not the sort of thing for which a reasonable person demands "evidence" -- though I have given it, because it's so explicit. You could go read his blog for yourself.

I am furious at the Catholic Church ( myself a Catholic) for not following up and messaging harder about the perils of the HHS mandate. The Church remains in the hands of men and certainly, as someone suggested above, Dolan - who initially messaged hard against BHO, has fallen asleep over the last several months. Something tells me Dolan has been given the same ‘compromise’ that was given to Justice Roberts.

I don’t know why so much is being made of this. I remember Al Gore, who was a well known pro-abort, along with then Candidate Bush give speeches at the Al Smith Dinner. Romney and Obama aren’t being paid, they’re not receiving any awards. I really don’t see the big deal. I hope the rich Catholics boo the both of them, but boo Obama more. Keep the bar open and they will. ;)

"The catholic church has been advocating for universal healthcare for nearly a hundred years!"

First, was it an intentional act of disrespect to use lower case "C"s on catholic and church when the original quote had them capitalized?

I would like to hear your reasoning on why you believe a the Church's position that everyone have access to affordable healthcare is a bad thing? Do you not want access to healthcare you can afford, and if not you and your family, who do you want to exclude?

Peace be with you

42
posted on 08/07/2012 3:03:11 PM PDT
by Natural Law
(Jesus did not leave us a Bible, He left us a Church.)

“”The catholic church has been advocating for universal healthcare for nearly a hundred years!””

You don’t seem to realize Catholic teaching at all-without the Catholic Church there would be no ethical health care system in the world to treat sick people.

You seem to advocate that hospitals should turn people away in a socialistic manor of appointed man(not the laws of God) making decisions of pseudo and demonic psychological profiling to decide who is really sick and who is not.Thus, making man the god of deciding who is treated in hospitals and who lives and dies.

It’s becoming clear that you might be the socialist, even though you might not realize what you’re writing

But what I want to know is Cardinal Dolan giving Holy Communion to that monkey-faced, baby murdering, sodomite-loving Andrew Cuomo? Cuomo spits in the face of the Catholic Church and all it’s teachings.

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